I really liked AST 5, INT 4 and the Endor Forest Ranger as a kid! They may have been cheaper but I feel some decent effort was put into them by the designers.
AST-5 seems like it would be mostly an armored, floating exosuit sort of like what real-life deep sea explorers use to check out shipwrecks, only this one floats in the air like a Sandspeeder or Speederbike. You'd mostly fly it vertically so the guard can see out the window - sort of how Slave-1 flies. Maybe if you needed to fly under an archway or into a cave that was too short for the vertical position, you'd rotate it to a horizontal one. I like it because it is colored and shaped a bit like Leia's Boush the Bounty Hunter helmet. My favorite of all of them is the INT-4 which worked fantastically as a scout and air support vehicle for my AT-AT. Looks like it really belongs with it too. It also would mainly use repulsor-lift tech like a Speederbike rather than aerodynamic lift from wings. I'd say the folding down wings are mainly for extra stability rather than lift. Sometimes as a kid, I'd put an action figure on each wing with a third in the cockpit so the INT-4 could deploy them on the ground sort of like soldiers jumping out of the side door of a big helicopter. I love how imaginative Kenner was with the Star Wars vehicles, both large and small.
I remember my older brothers CAP-2 toy. It was my favorite as a little kid too. I loved sticking Chewbacca in those expandable claws and suctioning it to the windows on my dads van lol. Great vid :)
I had the MTV-7, MLC-3, and the Endor Forest Ranger as a kid. They were a great way to take vehicles on trips and I loved them... They saw lots of action. Another great review and good to see them all together.
@@classicalvintagecollector I never liked them at all as a kid, either. Just like you, they were never seen in the movies so I never wanted them and thought they were "fake". Since then, I've met a friend (@Joseph F.v. Esch) that has strong-armed, cajoled, pressured, and otherwise shamed me into collecting some of these. I've grown to really appreciate them and the cool features that were pack into some of these.
@@MichaelJShaffer Thanks for taking the time to watch the video. I did make an update once I acquired the Imperial sniper, but the update is just showing the body rigs.
@@classicalvintagecollector I'll check it out. I'm working my way through your library. How rare are the Droids/Ewoks Mini-Rigs after the POTF 3? I never see those anywhere.
I just finished my SW mini rig collection early this year,I hav a few favorites but the one I love the most is the Endor Rebel Ranger vehicle ,it would’ve been awesome to hav seen it in action in the ROTJ
I call the last three "micro-rigs" but I've never seen one in person as far as I can remember. Nice set you have! Two things I would also have mentioned: with the Interceptor, It was designed to fit inside an AT-AT and be deployed from in into battle. The instuctions may not show that, but there is a photo on the box demostrating this additional feature. Second, the Shuttle Pod's landing feature is "automatic", that is, if you land it straight down on a table or flat surface the lever will depress upward allowing the wings to "automatically" fold up into landing mode. Mini-Rigs get a lot of shade from some collectors or are the brunt of jokes, but they offered kids a lot of playbility for a small purchase price.
I've got 3 of the MTV-7's. One INT-4. One ISP-6, but broken landing skids. Two or three of the ASP-5's. I might have that droid transport too. I'd love to get more of these & the others. Although, that sail skiff's gone way up in the after market ever since Jabba's barge dropped. Also, technically weren't the E-Web heavy blaster, radar laser dish & the vehicle energizer part of the mini-rigs too?
Everything Kenner Star Wars has gone up in price, especially the last three body rigs. I did a later video on the Imperial sniper. To answer your question, it depends who you talk to. Technically, there are nine mini rigs, three body rigs, and five accessories. You mentioned three of the five accessories above and the other two would be the ewok catapult and the ewok glider. I will be doing some future videos on those accessories. I appreciate the comments and the time you took to watch the video.
@@classicalvintagecollector Very interesting, I didn't know those accessories were part of different line. Don't know if you ever saw or remember, but some of these mini-rigs were in the Droids cartoon series. I don't remember personally, but I've seen them in the screen shots online. Just thought that was pretty cool, that Lucas Film threw those in there.
I think the Droids cartoon came out in 1985 and I started my senior year that fall, so I really wasn't into watching those cartoons - especially since I knew they were not part of the original trilogy.
Thank you for leaving a comment. I hear you about animals.. The cat chewed up one of the latches on my Darth Vader collector case. I still have the case, but the latches never worked again.
I rember the skiff and that is the one that i liked most thats until today that way.I relat that orange cupoard alike spacecraft to Zuckuss ,at all but that is not deliverd about it .
I don't understand why they could not have included any of these in the new Star Wars live acton series on Disney plus! I think they would have been great additions.
Everybody hates on the AST-5, I like it though. I imagine that the pilot doesn’t need to see in the laying down position because what he needs to see is projected on a screen . Kind of an augmented reality thing I guess. The biggest mistake is putting a window there. Should’ve just been a screen at eye level. Makes for a sleek , low profile combat aircraft in the flying position. With the thruster/wings in the down position it’s in hover mode. And folded up it allows the pilot to ingress/egress. Anyway I get what the designer was going for and I think it’s a neat little craft.
The Republic XF-103 would have had a similar issue had it gone into production. All the airplane had was two tiny side windows. Now that you brought at that point, that would have been an excellent vehicle for Jedis to test their force power skills in.
This was absolutely one of my favourite toys. The design was something so different. I think it appealed because I was also a Transformers nut and it was quite a versatile design. I assumed the pilot viewed via a screen.
As far as movie accuracy, I always thought these vehicles were a bit of a 'cheat'! I know they were approved by George Lucas, but since these figures didn't actually appear in any of the movies, they really aren't official 'cannon'!!
I really liked AST 5, INT 4 and the Endor Forest Ranger as a kid! They may have been cheaper but I feel some decent effort was put into them by the designers.
I got the mobile laser canon for Christmas, I loved it!
AST-5 seems like it would be mostly an armored, floating exosuit sort of like what real-life deep sea explorers use to check out shipwrecks, only this one floats in the air like a Sandspeeder or Speederbike. You'd mostly fly it vertically so the guard can see out the window - sort of how Slave-1 flies. Maybe if you needed to fly under an archway or into a cave that was too short for the vertical position, you'd rotate it to a horizontal one. I like it because it is colored and shaped a bit like Leia's Boush the Bounty Hunter helmet.
My favorite of all of them is the INT-4 which worked fantastically as a scout and air support vehicle for my AT-AT. Looks like it really belongs with it too. It also would mainly use repulsor-lift tech like a Speederbike rather than aerodynamic lift from wings. I'd say the folding down wings are mainly for extra stability rather than lift. Sometimes as a kid, I'd put an action figure on each wing with a third in the cockpit so the INT-4 could deploy them on the ground sort of like soldiers jumping out of the side door of a big helicopter.
I love how imaginative Kenner was with the Star Wars vehicles, both large and small.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
I remember my older brothers CAP-2 toy. It was my favorite as a little kid too. I loved sticking Chewbacca in those expandable claws and suctioning it to the windows on my dads van lol. Great vid :)
Thanks for sharing your story and watching the video.
I had the MTV-7, MLC-3, and the Endor Forest Ranger as a kid. They were a great way to take vehicles on trips and I loved them... They saw lots of action.
Another great review and good to see them all together.
Thank you. I didn't really care for the mini rigs as a kid, but as an adult I can see their purpose. Hindsight is 20/20.
@@classicalvintagecollector yeah, they were not a priority for me then but after I got them they grew on me.
@@classicalvintagecollector I never liked them at all as a kid, either. Just like you, they were never seen in the movies so I never wanted them and thought they were "fake". Since then, I've met a friend (@Joseph F.v. Esch) that has strong-armed, cajoled, pressured, and otherwise shamed me into collecting some of these. I've grown to really appreciate them and the cool features that were pack into some of these.
@@MichaelJShaffer Thanks for taking the time to watch the video. I did make an update once I acquired the Imperial sniper, but the update is just showing the body rigs.
@@classicalvintagecollector I'll check it out. I'm working my way through your library. How rare are the Droids/Ewoks Mini-Rigs after the POTF 3? I never see those anywhere.
I liked the mini rigs. Had most of them and got a lot of play with them
I just finished my SW mini rig collection early this year,I hav a few favorites but the one I love the most is the Endor Rebel Ranger vehicle ,it would’ve been awesome to hav seen it in action in the ROTJ
I have a much greater appreciation for them now that I am an adult.
I call the last three "micro-rigs" but I've never seen one in person as far as I can remember. Nice set you have!
Two things I would also have mentioned: with the Interceptor, It was designed to fit inside an AT-AT and be deployed from in into battle. The instuctions may not show that, but there is a photo on the box demostrating this additional feature.
Second, the Shuttle Pod's landing feature is "automatic", that is, if you land it straight down on a table or flat surface the lever will depress upward allowing the wings to "automatically" fold up into landing mode.
Mini-Rigs get a lot of shade from some collectors or are the brunt of jokes, but they offered kids a lot of playbility for a small purchase price.
Thank you for taking the time to watch the video.
Nice presentation.
Thank you for taking the time to watch the video. My only regret is I did not have the imperial sniper at that point.
I was an MT7. Owner. Didnt even know it was star wars until I saw it in a collection video.
Thank you for taking the time to watch the video.
I only had Cap 2 as a kid. I’d like a few of them now.
It looks like that Endor Ranger lived on as a CIS Snail Droid from the Clone Wars.
I never thought of that, but you might be on to something.
I never thought of that, but you might be on to something.
Good info, just getting into these...
Thanks for watching. Please check out the follow-up after I got all three body rigs
ua-cam.com/video/CBzLzrzSXH0/v-deo.htmlsi=SivMT6Ov9WRpEw2V
I've got 3 of the MTV-7's. One INT-4. One ISP-6, but broken landing skids. Two or three of the ASP-5's. I might have that droid transport too. I'd love to get more of these & the others. Although, that sail skiff's gone way up in the after market ever since Jabba's barge dropped.
Also, technically weren't the E-Web heavy blaster, radar laser dish & the vehicle energizer part of the mini-rigs too?
Everything Kenner Star Wars has gone up in price, especially the last three body rigs. I did a later video on the Imperial sniper. To answer your question, it depends who you talk to. Technically, there are nine mini rigs, three body rigs, and five accessories. You mentioned three of the five accessories above and the other two would be the ewok catapult and the ewok glider. I will be doing some future videos on those accessories. I appreciate the comments and the time you took to watch the video.
@@classicalvintagecollector Very interesting, I didn't know those accessories were part of different line. Don't know if you ever saw or remember, but some of these mini-rigs were in the Droids cartoon series. I don't remember personally, but I've seen them in the screen shots online. Just thought that was pretty cool, that Lucas Film threw those in there.
I think the Droids cartoon came out in 1985 and I started my senior year that fall, so I really wasn't into watching those cartoons - especially since I knew they were not part of the original trilogy.
I had 6 of these, with the forest ranger falling victim to our Old English sheepdog! The rest are still with me...
Thank you for leaving a comment. I hear you about animals.. The cat chewed up one of the latches on my Darth Vader collector case. I still have the case, but the latches never worked again.
I rember the skiff and that is the one that i liked most thats until today that way.I relat that orange cupoard alike spacecraft to Zuckuss ,at all but that is not deliverd about it .
I don't understand why they could not have included any of these in the new Star Wars live acton series on Disney plus! I think they would have been great additions.
I agree. At least Rebels made the Imperial Troop Transport canon.
These were really fun. The CAP-2 was a definitive bad guy vehicle.
That is one of my son's favorite vehicles, too.
Lift & Drag is not an issue when you distort space-time around an object, which is what many SW vehicles do. Engines just give'm an extra push.
I wish I had at least 7 of them.
Some are very hard to come by and expensive.
MTV 7 is awesome. spring loaded
Thanks for watching the video.
I think that 1984 catalogue is the last one to my knowledge. Not sure if they had something different for droids/ewoks or if that counts.
Kinda what I thought. I would eventually like to get the earlier versions that have pink and blue perimeters.
Everybody hates on the AST-5, I like it though. I imagine that the pilot doesn’t need to see in the laying down position because what he needs to see is projected on a screen . Kind of an augmented reality thing I guess. The biggest mistake is putting a window there. Should’ve just been a screen at eye level. Makes for a sleek , low profile combat aircraft in the flying position. With the thruster/wings in the down position it’s in hover mode. And folded up it allows the pilot to ingress/egress. Anyway I get what the designer was going for and I think it’s a neat little craft.
The Republic XF-103 would have had a similar issue had it gone into production. All the airplane had was two tiny side windows. Now that you brought at that point, that would have been an excellent vehicle for Jedis to test their force power skills in.
This was absolutely one of my favourite toys. The design was something so different. I think it appealed because I was also a Transformers nut and it was quite a versatile design. I assumed the pilot viewed via a screen.
Why did you sit so far to the right?
As far as movie accuracy, I always thought these vehicles were a bit of a 'cheat'! I know they were approved by George Lucas, but since these figures didn't actually appear in any of the movies, they really aren't official 'cannon'!!
Very true.
my dad wouldn't buy me those large plastic toys .
darth vader's cape would split around the arms .
Very common.